speedvegan

We did it !!

Time 2:12:37 | Pace 10:08 | Age Group 325/1068

Splits
Mile 1: 10:07
Mile 2: 9:33
Mile 3: 9:40
Mile 4: 9:42
Mile 5: 9:41
Mile 6: 9:56
Mile 7: 9:37
Mile 8: 9:45
Mile 9: 9:54
Mile 10: 9:53
Mile 11: 9:46
Mile 12: 9:49
Mile 13: 9:33

This was a very special race because it was Geoffrey’s first Half Marathon ! I am incredibly proud of him. It’s a huge accomplishment ! I knew he could do it, but it was still very impressive to witness.

If you clicked on the “Garmin Data” link above, you may have noticed that it displays the details for an 18 mile run. As some of you may know, I am currently training for my first marathon. I was supposed to run 18 miles the previous week, a couple of days after returning from New Zealand. I wasn’t feeling too great when I arrived, though, and had to postpone my run. I thought of doing it during the week, but things were crazy at work and, before I knew it, the weekend had arrived. I thought about skipping it altogether, but knew that missing such a key training run would annoy me psychologically. At the same time, I wanted this to be “Geoffrey’s run” and I didn’t want to do anything to jeopardize his success. In the end, I decided that running 5 miles before the race would be the way to go and, somehow, it worked out.

To avoid the crowds and confusion that Geoff encountered upon dropping me off last year, we opted to stay in a hotel close to the start for the night. We arrived at the hotel in the afternoon after picking up our races packets and having a delicious vegan meal in at Book & Books in South Beach. Geoffrey’s status got us a room upgrade with a gorgeous view of the start line.

We met some local friends for dinner at Escopazzo, a hidden vegan-friendly gem we found through HappyCow. Although the restaurant itself is not even remotely vegetarian, the chef is passionate about raw food and prepares some of the best raw dishes I’ve ever had. The staff is very knowledgeable about veganism which was quite refreshing. I opted for pasta, which they threw together after I told them what I liked. Everyone else ordered raw items and I was thankful because I got to try a few of them. As if I didn’t already feel like I was in heaven, our waiter informed us that there was a raw vegan dessert available: chocolate mousse. Geoffrey shared one serving which was perfect.

Unfortunately, we lost track of time and didn’t make it back to the hotel until after midnight. Surprisingly, I woke up on time and was out of the room before 5am. Our hotel was conveniently one block away from a very scenic causeway which was perfect for my run. There were people on the causeway setting up the aid stations I’d later pass during the race. I had an OK run despite the few hours of sleep the night before.

Geoffrey was waiting downstairs when I got back to the hotel. Together, we walked to the start line and waited. It was very exciting to stand there with him, like nothing I’d ever felt before. There was a lot of commotion, but eventually, we were off. The first mile came quickly. I neglected to use the port-o-lets before the race so I was forced to stop for the first time ever during a race. Fortunately, Geoffrey needed to stop as well so I didn’t feel too guilty about slowing him down. That was somewhere around miles 5 and 6. We ran straight through the rest of the way.

It was very humid in the morning. I felt really hot, especially after mile 9. I was carrying water with me, but stopped for gatorade at a few of the aid stations. I had one gel at the start and three during the race. My stomach felt funny most of the time. I think it was due to the long gap between the two runs. Hopefully there won’t be a need to repeat that again in the future.

The best moment of the race was crossing the finish line with Geoffrey. I’ve seen Geoffrey go from running around the block to running a Half Marathon in just over two years. In the meantime, he ran his first 5k. He slowly, but consistently, increased his weekly mileage. He fought his way through the darkness of an injury and came out a stronger runner. He soldiered through his first 10 mile run and marked off a major goal. I know the confidence these accomplishments instill in us and I’ve seen how they’ve transformed him. I really couldn’t be happier.

I hope there will be more events like this one. We’ve already signed up for next year’s race, so I know there will be at least one more.